Full WSJ Coverage: A Troubling July Jobs Report

8/2/2013 9:06AM

The U.S. unemployment rate ticked down to 7.4 percent in July, while 168,000 non-farm payrolls were added to the economy. WSJ's Phil Izzo, Victoria McGrane and Rolfe Winkler break down the numbers. Photo: Getty Images.

This transcript has been automatically generated and may not be 100% accurate.

... the the ... good morning it's the first Friday a month ... that means jobs Friday the numbers are in the unemployment rate ticks down to seven point four percent from seven point six percent last month ... but nonfarm payrolls created one hundred and sixty two thousand that's a little bit less than expected ... at a hundred ... of the hundred mm eighty three thousand was the number expected ... first off the show we got me Victoria McGrane from Washington she's joining us on her maiden voyage on jobs Friday Victoria good morning ... the morning ... so thanks for coming in what's your fast reaction to the report ... my first reaction is that ... this is as he said ... less than expected and that's ... you know it is going to make people think ... that it can be a little more as it tends ... to the people that are semillon like they've been talking to their wreaths fears that growth as it ... happens much in the second half of the year as people are expecting to know ... what ... how does this well how does this fit into the Fed's ... forecast we got this week ... what with that again ... clearly we're may be anticipating that a little bit because they at modest or ... slightly down created their own assessment of the economy they use this word modest growth with a hat you know since the end of the recession in describing the economy is growing moderate to moderately is not modest and there's a difference there apparently her that that ... on a basic no reaffirmed expectations that he expected the pace of growth that happen the second half of the air ... now there is one more doctor for her for the next FOMC meeting in September and so maybe in those numbers will give us a stronger picture ... but right now I think this is an eight week people will confuse them askance uncertain about the exact timing of when the Fed is gonna make this ... reduction in its bond buying program okay I there are few interesting data points ... in the jobs report that we're going to really get to with Phil Izzo in the newsroom one thing the gems out of the ... provisions ... read at the bottom on nonfarm payrolls for both of the last two months if I'm correct ... I made was replies from under ninety five thousand jobs ... to one hundred and seventy seven hundreds of the six thousand ... June was revised higher ninety five two hundred mm eighty eight ... so combined ... twenty six thousand jobs fewer than retains than previously reported ... not a huge swing but ... not great ... write your Tennessee offensive at this picture that you now that the ... economy and its ... maintaining a certain place that it's really not telling us anything amazing ... okay let's jump the kiosk It Phil Izzo Papa fill in in in the newsroom fill good morning there are so first a what's happening behind the numbers okay so first boats not a good number as you said it's less than expected ... on the ... revised down the last two months by about twenty six thousand total that reduces the pace over the last couple of months to around a hundred and eighty thousand dollars ... to two hundred thousand so that's not going in the right direction again we're still adding jobs is a good thing but this case is really too slow and it could maybe deliver the catch if we look at the GDP numbers the other day filled the relatively slow so it ... could be some of that is finally getting through that there was a bit of a slowing ... in the second quarter and were seen that with the with these job numbers but there is hope for the second half to some strange things in here like construction true ... love was one of the sector that lost jobs even though we've seen on strength in the housing sector the Vedas and seasonality issues plane ... playing a role where people that high ... earlier in the year than they usually do ... aam ... but at ... the numbers we've seen so far for June and for July are looking pretty good so the hope is that maybe in the second half the so the couple and ... the trail wanna come back to you whether another thing that I'm looking at in a report ... Queensway to stay with the tick down a little bit after coming up it's the little bit and in the last couple months ... By input but overall we're not seeing much ... wage growth Anderson stories yesterday about ... the fast food worker striking those things are kind of picking up nationwide a little bit ... I'd tell us about the impact of wage growth on on the recovery ... well I mean it does what one other factor that kind of a feeds into the narrative that the economy in we've been seeing some impressive job growth a little less impressive than it seemed at first but ... so the other let underlying things going on ... you know ... he ... so that it's not feeding into a lake strong economic growth in the same time it ... that that is very concerned about that ... they know they they ... have this these jobs thresholds for you that you know ... various policy moves but they they are concerned that here the unemployment rate ... coming down is an asset coming down the right reasons and that ... the job creation and housing isn't going to be able to be sustainable because of things like wage growth and a lot of jobs being created or part-time ... means consumers can have ... a lot of money to spend to a continued economic growth you fill a come back to you the unemployment rate ... to get down to seven point four percent steady ... downtick over the last few months ridden closer to the seven percent threshold a six point five percent threshold if the Fed is established for pulling back on various ... extraordinary ... monetary policy measures and to tell me I mean what he doesn't seem like ... Kelley was the driver really behind your ... back that fall in the fall when BT said is that they're looking at whether the employer is only for the right reasons ... now this the big drop two percentage points a day before a combination of the right reasons in the wrong reasons ... on the one hand a lot more people were employed last month and were ... up and the previous month so that's good that's the right reasons Annabelle lot fewer people were unemployed ... but the same time we saw a trough in the Libor ... that's the people who would say they're looking for work or wanted job ... and that number declined this month which is why we had such a big drop in the unemployment rate ... is it's not just the good news that people are ... on the people of ... God getting jobs but it's also the bad news that people are dropping out ...